The Dabābu- And Quttû -Type Summonses

10.1163/ej.9789004174962.i-338.27

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Chapter Summary

The decision records and the preliminary protocols describe the activities of the various people in the court, including the adjudicating authorities, witnesses and parties to the proceedings. Similarly, the depositions record statements that are made during the course of such proceedings. This chapter discusses text-types that do not necessarily narrate courtroom activities or record litigants' statements. This lack of narrative context means that in order to situate these text-types within the 'tablet trail' one must reconstruct the situations that led to their promulgation. The chapter considers two of these text-types whose place in the adjudication of disputes is easiest to determine. Both the dabābu - and quttû -type summonses employ phrases that allude to a dispute. Thus, it is clear that they belong in the 'tablet trail' of texts composed during the adjudication of disputes. The chapter focuses primarily on determining the legal function of these two text-types.